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Seven students recognized for honors projects at St. Bonaventure

May 12, 2013 | ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. — Seven students were recognized for their Honors projects during St. Bonaventure University’s Honors Ceremony on Saturday, and all received Honors Degrees on Sunday at Commencement.

The students and their Honors projects are:

Jessie Briggs, a psychology major from Baldwinsville, N.Y. Her project was designed to determine which personality traits, if any, are able to best predict differences in the reactions of undergraduate students to negative feedback from a potential romantic partner using a survey research design with a feedback manipulation.

Madeline Gionet, a journalism and mass communication major from Greenwich, N.Y. Her project looked at the topic of well-being and how people can make simple changes to their lives to improve their well-being and the well-being of those around them.

Brett Kegan, a philosophy major from Syracuse, N.Y. He wrote a 200-page memoir that explored his own relationship with Albert Camus, a French-Algerian writer who lived 1913 to 1960. The memoir covered his childhood in the suburb of Syracuse, stretched through high school and college, and ended with a trip to Egypt during its first elections.

Kathryn Kvas, a journalism and mass communication major from Mississauga, Ont. She wrote “Between Worlds,” a 121-page fiction novel. The aim of the project was to write and complete her first fiction novel, including multiple revisions.

Aleda Leis, a mathematics major from Pittsburgh. Her project focused on the evolution of the use of mathematics in musical composition, from Pythagoras and Bach to the computerized random compositions created by Xenakis.
Megan O’Donnell, a journalism/mass communication and political science double major from Freedom, N.Y. Her study examined whether public service announcements impact the changing of perceptions related to the subject of drinking and driving.

Katherine Rush, a special education major from Castleton, N.Y. Her project was a literary review of research on working memory and how it relates to the field of education; and the creation of a teacher-resource website that explains working memory in a way that helps teachers understand its importance in the classroom.